STAFF OPINION: Perspective check

In the midst of this global pandemic, with history taking place all around us, it can feel very overwhelming. I get it. I’m with you. This has been hard to navigate. In one way or another, we are all affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

I know leaving school and moving back home is inconvenient, annoying and maybe even a little disturbing at times. I know seniors have been robbed of the end of their college experience with no time to prepare or adjust, and that sucks.

But one thing that I hope the COVID-19 pandemic will bring about is a long-needed perspective shift, not just from young adults — who, let’s face it, bear the brunt of society’s complaints on this particular topic — but for our society as a whole.

It is the required shift from a self-centered mindset to a perspective that pulls back the lens and zooms out, broadening our viewpoint and mindset on what is actually important, essential and meaningful in the world during times of global crisis and truthfully, in all times.

Many people are focusing on more mundane problems rather than the detrimental way that COVID-19 is impacting our world. Dwelling on the loss of graduation, your child's birthday party, or the ability to freely leave your house are such insignificant issues when we take the opportunity to look through the lens of reality, a reality that there have been days with over 2,000 COVID-19 deaths in the U.S. alone.

It’s okay to feel bummed and disheartened about the small ways COVID-19 is derailing our lives. We are all irritated about these inconveniences. The disappointment we feel and the losses are legitimate, but let’s not wallow in those losses that are genuinely small in the scheme of life. With what is going on in the world right now, we need to instead think about what we are grateful for and recognize what is truly important.

I urge you to focus on the good, on how lucky we are to be healthy and to hopefully not have COVID-19 taking the lives of our loved ones because those are indeed the big losses, the ones that matter, the ones that will absolutely impact our lives forever.

I hope and pray that each of us will remain only lightly touched by this pandemic, merely losing our graduations and proms, parties, Spikeball on the lawn and intramural soccer games.

Please remember this is about people’s lives.

Let’s do our best to remain positive, to be thankful for what we do still have, and to acknowledge our blessings.